Blaire Darkling
Blaire Darkling was a former Paradox Shinobi and a high-ranking member of XERRD who was in charge of security on Dinosaur Island before leading the organization in the waning hours of the Dino Attack. Born John Blaire Howlett, he was a former intergalactic mercenary named Matthew Vherestorm. Biography Early Life John Blaire Howlett was born in 1977 and grew up in a small town in LEGOLAND. He was frequently the target of bullies during his school days. This and a fallout with his parents led Blaire to leave his home at age 17. He drove through the countryside in his father's stolen pick-up for days before it broke down. He was found by an older couple known as the Perkins who sympathized with his situation and allowed him to move into their ranch, where they housed nearly a dozen teenagers who had been abandoned or had left home. From the Perkins, both who had traveled the world and learned a variety of skills, Blaire was taught various forms of martial arts, how to use firearms, and how to fix and repair vehicles. Also from the couple Blaire became extremely proficient in swordplay and preferred to use katanas as weapons. Despite finding a new home, Blaire continued and eventually graduated high school. He became so attached to the Perkins and his "siblings" that he considered them his true family over his birth family. Matthew Vherestorm After graduating high school, Blaire attended technical school for two years before being hired at a box company as a IT consultant. Blaire quickly became extremely discontent with his menial job. With his job in jeopardy due to worldwide economic downturn and the belief he was wasting his exceptional abilities, Blaire and coworker Edward Bernard embezzled funds from the company using their technical know-how to fund an expedition off-planet in 1999. Boarding the civilian transport known as the Mondo's Retribution, the two left the LEGO Planet in late May, seeking new opportunities and adventures in LEGO Universe. Two weeks into their expedition, the Retribution ''was hijacked by pirates and raiders under the employ of intergalactic crime lord Damieon Kardas near Saturn. Blaire and Ed, as well as the rest of the survivors from the ship. The prisoners were taken to the planet Tartarus to be executed as entertainment for the denizens of the planet. Armed only with medieval weapons, Blaire and Ed were forced to fight Kardas' champion, an enslaved 4+ Figure named the Beastmaster who rode a Bilgen Bug as his steed. Armed with two swords, the abilities he had learned from the Perkins, and with nothing left to lose, Blaire took on the Beastmaster head-on, striking down the champion's beast before besting the Beastmaster in a duel. Soaking in his victory and the adoration of the crowd, Blaire grew angry as Kardas' men attempted to contain him, recognizing him as the pirates that had hijacked the ''Mondo's Retribution. Blaire stabbed the lead guard and stole his blaster and opened fire on the other guards until he knocked unconscious by endless swarms of Kardas' men. Blaire awoke to find himself in the private chamber of Damieon Kardas himself. Blaire and Kardas discussed the former's past and his abilities before the Kardas offered a job to Blaire as a hired gun and enforcer for the Kardas Empire. Believing he had finally found his calling, Blaire abandoned his former life as a lowly IT consultant and renamed himself "Matthew Vherestorm." Vherestorm quickly established a name for himself as both a brilliant tactician as well as a deadly warrior. As his notoriety grew, Matthew Vherestorm established a small network of allies to assist him in his work that operated out of the planet Tartarus, home to the universe's most dangerous criminals. Vherestorm's work with criminal and anarchic groups across the universe quickly attracted the attention of the Galactic Council and put him at odds with Space Police, Unitron, and Roboforce over the years. Vherestorm returned to the LEGO Planet a number of times during his criminal reign, where his old identity was presumed dead. His work on Earth pitted him against the Alpha Team and he notably worked with Silencia Venomosa at one point. Most notably, Vherestorm's activities across the galaxy eventually attracted the attention of a space ninja named Kareem Nazareno. From their first encounter, Vherestorm became obsessed with defeating Nazareno, whom he perceieved to be the only true challenge to his abilities. Vherestorm and Nazareno's conflict would last through much of the 2000s, with neither of two managing to defeat each other. At some point, Nazareno managed to leave a scar underneath Vherestorm's right eye Paradox In 2007, Vherestorm was suddenly hit with extreme remorse and guilt for his crimes. Wishing to redeem himself, he dropped the mantle of Matthew Vherestorm and became Blaire once again. Having heard of the Nexus Force's fight against the Maelstrom, Blaire decided to join them, believing his skills could be useful against the Stromling armies. Before leaving for the Nexus System, Blaire established a new identity by the name of "Blaire Darkling," taking an old, informal name for Stromlings as his surname. He passed the tests required to join and chose to join Paradox as a Shinobi, facinated with chaotic nature of the Maelstrom. During his time as a Shinobi, Blaire learned much about the destructive tendencies of the Maelstrom and its Stromlings. His intellect, indepth knowledge of the Maelstrom. and his skill as a Shinobi caught the eye of Dr. Rex, who invited Blaire to defect from Paradox and join a new organization called Xenon Elite Researchers Regarding Destruction.Eager to redeem himself and improve the universe in anyway that he could, Blaire accepted Dr. Rex's offer and returned to the LEGO Planet with him and the rest of his newly aquired followers. Under XERRD, Blaire primarily worked in research related to the Maelstrom and other chaotic forces. Blaire Darkling was present for the study of the Maelstrom Crystal in the Temple of Creation on Adventurers' Island. The crystal reacted violently with an orb of Imagination, corrupting the temple into a Maelstrom temple. Blaire was caught in the reaction, turning his hair pure white and damaging his eyes and turning them red. Blaire's eyes became extremely sensitive to light, forcing him to wear sunglasses at all times. Dino Attack Not long after the incident, the direction of XERRD's research and mission dramatically changed. Seeing the LEGO Planet as corrupted due to the destructive nature of the Minifig race, XERRD would wipe out much of Minifig population with Mutant Dinos and restart civilization anew. Blaire worked on the Maelstrom aspects of the project early, but as scientific nature of the creation of the Mutant Dinosaurs expanded beyond his knowledge, he began to prepare XERRD and its facilities for their apocalpyse in case of disaster. This primarily consisted of taking command of the Minifig mercenaries and Quasifigus lacertilia to use as XERRD's security force at their various installiations across the globe and played a significant role in improving the security systems in XERRD fortresses. After the Dino Attack began, Blaire Darkling primarily worked as the head of security at the Dino Island Laboratory and continued to monitor and improve the defenses of the laboratory and other fortresses, particular after the creation of the Dino Attack Team and their infiltration of the Dino Island Laboratory midway throught he war. Throughout the war, Blaire frequently made routine inspections to other XERRD facilities and monitored Dino Attack Team activity. Blaire was also frequently sent on missions with XERRD's security force to destablize Dino Attack Team-controlled regions In the waning days of the war, a large force of Brickster-Bot and FMB-Bot attacked the Dinosaur Island facility. Blaire played a major role in helping Dr. Rex lead the defense of the laboratory while the bulk of XERRD's leadership traveled to Adventurers' Island to secure the Maelstrom Temple from the Dino Attack Team. After the bulk of the robots had been destroyed, Blaire returned to the laboratory and led the Hybrids and Minifig guards against the remaining robots that had infiltrated. He disapproved of Dr. Rex's attempts to stop the robots himself due to his destructive Mutant T-Rex nature that often led to the damaging and destrction XERRD equipment and machinery. Eventually, all the Brickster-Bots and FMB-Bots were destroyed. However, due to the distraction of fighting the bots, Blaire was unaware that the Brickster had planted numerous explosives around the laboratory, allowing the Brickster to detonate them, destroying much of the laboratory. Blaire quickly regrouped the remaining operatives and helped them retreat to an outpost in the Goo Caverns. As XERRD's top scientists were closing in on the Maelstrom Temple, Blaire was approached by Oswald Fabello, one of his top soldiers. He revealed a plan to Blaire involving kidnapping and getting revenge on his mentally unstable mother. Although Blaire was indifferent to the plan, he learned that Athena Fabello was being held in Antarctica. Interested in seeing the refuge facilities that housed much of the Minifig population, Blaire decided to accompany Oswald to Napoleon XIV Mental Institution. At the institution, the two managed to easily get into the building were allowed to gain audience with Athena. As they traveled through the facility, Blaire discovered through observations that the security system at Napoleon XIV was extremely flawed. After finding her, Oswald tried to talked and reasoned with his mother. Athena suddenly became angry and fearful after hearing that her daughter was in danger. Having read her file and knowing Athena had been prone to violent episodes when she was first institutionalized, Blaire helped calm her down before she had another episode and alerted any employees. After convincing Athena to join them, Blaire, Oswald, and Athena made it out of the institution and the facilities and returned to the Goo Caverns via helicopter. Shortly after returning the outpost, the scientists from Adventurers' Island arrived and revealed that Baron Typhonus was still alive, was controlling the Maelstrom, and had manipulated XERRD into starting the Dino Attack. While Dr. Rex disregarded this news as falsehoods, Blaire began to question the morality of the Dino Attack. At some point, Blaire met up with Oswald and Athena once again, making a good impression on the latter. He learned from Oswald that Athena had not switched illusions in hours. From that point, Blaire carefully monitored Athena and came to his own conclusions about her mental state. At War's End On December 21, Blaire participated in the Dr. Rex's final assault of the Dino Attack Headquarters in LEGO City. He chose not wear his Shinobi gear, believing it would slow him down. Prior to the battle, he discharged the Minifig guards working for XERRD, knowing they would be slaughtered in the battlefield and took control of the Hybrid forces. Blaire monitored the battle from a tall building with Hybrid snipers. He ordered to Hybrids to find Dr. Inferno, who was eventually brought to the top of the building. After speaking with him, Blaire convinced Inferno to send his henchmen into battle against the Agents Defense Organization and Dino Attack Team. As he watched the battle, Blaire was met by Alvin Gadd, who was sent by Michelle Glados to inform him that Dr. Rex had been defeated, only to rise back up, now under the possession of Baron Typhonus. Believing Dr. Rex to be no longer capable of leading XERRD, Blaire declared Glados was now the leader and what XERRD did was up to her. Blaire then turned to discover that two Hybrids in his command post had discovered Zachary Virchaus and Athena Fabello. After bringing Athena back into present, Blaire spoke with Zach and explained his role in Athena's escape from Napoleon XIV and what he had observed. He contemplated killing Zach before a Hybrid called him away. Blaire met with Oswald once again, who asked that Blaire have Athena and Zach escorted across the river. Blaire obliged and had Zach and Athena leave with two Hybrids. Blaire monitored Zach and Athena's progress and watched as they boarded a Fire Hammer. Deciding that the Agents helicopter that had protected them was no longer necessary and wishing to make an example for the Hybrid snipers, Blaire shot the helicopter down, marking the first true Minifig he had killed since his Matthew Vherestorm days. He observed Zach calling for the Brickster and an Agents jet to open fire on his command post, so Blaire quickly left the building as the Brickster and the Agent destroyed it. He took Zach's hostile payback as a challenge and decided to seek him out. Before he could, he received word through his walkie-talkie of Michelle Glados' death at the hands of a rogue Mutant Lizard, leaving XERRD without a leader. Blaire quickly evaluated a few notable, high-ranking scientists and determined them unfit to lead the organization. Deciding he was XERRD's best option for survival, Blaire instated himself as XERRD's leader. As Blaire traveled across the battlefield, he found two Hybrids to aid him. He soon found Zach, Athena, Athena's daughter Minerva, and Commander Vinyaya beside two Fire Hammers. Blaire brutally attacked Zach while the Hybrids held off Minerva and the Space Police officer. Zach manage to cut Blaire's left cheek with a pirate hook before Blaire made the Elite Dino Attack agent into a Minifig shield. He was backing away from the two Dino Attack agents and the Fire Hammers when none other than Nazareno appeared with Zelda Frodongan with him. His initial surprise faded into cold amusement. He released Zach and revealed himself to the crowd as Matthew Vherestorm. He then briefly spoke with Nazareno and was about to fight him when a Mutant T-Rex interrupted the confrontation. Using the Mutant T-Rex's arrival to his advantage, Blaire fled so he could come up with a plan. Fighting through the battle, Blaire eventually took shelter in a makeshift XERRD communications outpost, where he commanded XERRD to keep fighting the Dino Attack Team while he decided his next move. As he considered a truce with the Dino Attack, he learned that Willa the Witch and Dr. Inferno would cut ties if he decided to create a truce. Deciding that the fate of the planet was more important than XERRD's two allies, Blaire finally decided to contact Semick, a Dino Attack agent that had offered XERRD the chance to form a truce. After finalizing a truce between the two organizations, Blaire made Matthew Cyrista, now an Elite Dino Attack agent, his second-in-command so that XERRD could atone in case Blaire lost his position as leader. After announcing the truce to XERRD, Blaire left the outpost as the Hybrids betrayed XERRD to find Nazareno to end their rivalry. He also intended to find Zachary, Minerva, Vinyaya, and Zelda and kill them since they knew his secret. He eventually found Nazareno with Zelda Frodongan and Solomon Koplowitz. After exchanging formalities, the four were attacked by a large group of Mutant Dinos led by two Mutant T-Rexes and two Maelstrom Dragons. The group fought of the dinos until Nazareno and Blaire split off to fight the Maelstrom Dragons. Their fight led them into the air and eventually crashing far away from Zelda and Solomon. Alone, Blaire took the opportunity to initiate a final duel with his old rival. Their sword battle led them to fighting on top of a Fire Hammer racing through the battlefield. Blaire managed to knock Nazareno from the vehicle, only for his enemy to use a passing pack of Mutant Lizards to climb back onboard and kick Blaire off, landing in front of Dino Attack Headquarters and losing a katana in the process. They carried their battle through the first floor and reached the second. As the fought, Nazareno mockingly called him Vherestorm and claimed that Blaire had not left his past behind, infuriating him. They then both lost their katanas, leading into a fierce fist fight in which Blaire finally removed Nazareno's cowl and saw his face for the first time. As they fought, Blaire gained the upper hand and found his katana. He prepared to kill Nazareno when Commander Vinyaya, Minerva, Zelda, and Bluetooth appeared, with the latter shooting him. However, the bullet was caught in Blaire's bulletproof vest. Despite this, it distracted Blaire long enough for Nazareno to get back on his feet and get a katana. Together with Zelda, they battled Blaire briefly before he knocked away Nazareno and destroyed Zelda's katana. As he stabbed his sword, Nazareno knocked the blade away furiously and continued the duel alone. From Nazareno's actions, Blaire quickly saw that Nazareno was infatuated with Zelda and condemned Nazareno for forming emotional attachments. Their fight led to Blaire losing his sword again. Blaire quickly stopped a killing blow from Nazareno and continued to fight Nazareno with his fists. He eventually managed to take Nazareno's remaining sword from him and, although Nazareno held back briefly, managed to stab it through his chest. He couldn't savor his victory for long, as Vinyaya, Minerva, and Bluetooth opened fire on him. Picking up his own katana, Blaire fled down the hallway and eventually escaped Dino Attack Headquarters. Blaire Darkling fled to a ruined Fire Hammer and dug out its First Aid kit so he could attend to his wounds. He decided it would be ideal simply to flee, figuring the agents present at Nazareno's death would reveal his secret. He was then ambushed by a group of Space Marauders led by Gary Oak, demanding Blaire surrender. Upon learning that his secret had been revealed wide-spread, Blaire, in a fit of anger, killed the Space Marauders and began to kill anyone that crossed his path. Barely a few minutes later, Dr. Rex was defeated on top of Dino Attack Headquarters, the Mutant Dinos were either destroyed or fled, and the Fright Knights and Inferno agents surrendered, ending the Dino Attack war. The Final Duel Even after the battle ended, Blaire continued to slaughter Minifigs in droves. This was merely a way to hopefully draw out Minerva, Zelda, Bluetooth, and Vinyaya so he could kill them for revealing his identity. His slaughter was ended with the arrival of Epic Winston, who engaged Blaire in a battle. Unwilling to use his katana against the Agent's massive broadsword, Blaire resulted to dodging Epic Winston's blows and attacking him with his fists. He managed to disarm the agent and was about to shoot him when Epic Winston rose, dodged the blow, and locked Blaire into a standoff when he grabbed hold of a dead Space Marauder's rocket launcher. The standoff was ended with the arrival of two Fire Hammers, one whom Blaire saw was carrying Vinyaya and Bluetooth. With Epic Winston distracted by the sudden arrival, Blaire stole his rocket launcher and knocked him away and destroyed the Fire Hammer with a rocket launcher blast. However, the agents in the Fire Hammer escaped the fiery explosion and engaged him in battle. His rocket launcher was soon taken away by Bluetooth thanks to a blast from the Quasifigus pterisa. He got into a fight with Commander Vinyaya that was interrupted with Pterisa fired another blast of lightning at him. He managed to shoot her shoulder before Vinyaya attacked him again. He wrapped her into choke hold and punched the scarred side of her face repeatedly before Bluetooth ran at him angrily. Blaire managed to easily down Bluetooth and was about to shoot one of them when Pterisa attacked him again. Ignoring Vinyaya and Bluetooth, Blaire was shot once by Zelda before Zach started to fire blasts of Maelstrom at him. Remembering his earlier plans to kill Zach, Blaire charged at the young Dino Attack agent. Zachary responded by firing Maelstrom lightning in Blaire's face, destroying his sunglasses and revealing his red eyes to the surrounding agent. Eager for revenge, Blaire lunged at Zach, only to be stopped briefly by Clint Wayne and Angel Eyes. Their katana and knife clashed briefly before Blaire was knocked to the side by Minerva. After knocking her away, Blaire got into a short duel with Dr. Cyrista and managed to overwhelm him, only for Zelda to intervene. As more people came to assist in taking down Blaire, he realized he was in over his head. Hijacking a newly-arrived Fire Hammer, Blaire drove through the city, pursued closely by the other Fire Hammer and a T-1 Typhoon. However, thanks to some evasive maneuvers, he managed to lose them, but not before Zachary, Minerva, Vinyaya, and Zelda jumped over to his vehicle. He tried to shake them off, only for his vehicle to hit the foot of a Mutant T-Rex, sending the vehicle crashing into a graveyard. His temper and sanity being pushed to the limit, Blaire climbed out of the vehicle, determined to kill the four agents harassing him once and for all. Tired and in pain, Blaire barely managed to hold off the four agents' attacks. He managed to injury Minerva, Zach, and Vinyaya sufficiently enough that he could kill them. Before he could do so, Zelda stepped forward and started a fiery duel with the former assassin. Blaire toyed with her briefly before she kicked him in the face. Furious and tired of the battle, Blaire fought fiercely against Zelda, whom he had bested easily before. Despite this, Zelda began to pick up her form and was started to match his skill. Zelda was able to disarm him of his katana. Blaire attacked her physical and managed to rip her blade away. As Zelda dodged his swings, he noticed her eyes look behind him, leading him to turn and stop a fatal blow from Zachary with his hand. Zelda used this opportunity to kick her sword out of Blaire's hand and stab it forward, only for him to stop the blade as well. At that point, Minerva and Vinyaya stepped forward and, with their combined strength, plunged both katanas into Blaire's torso. Blaire stared in shock as he realized his life was about to end. His shock faded into almost calm acceptance. He mused on the poetic symbolism of him being killed by Nazareno's katanas before they were pulled out of. He then collapsed and died. Abilities and Traits Blaire Darkling was extremely intelligent and cunning, being chosen by Dr. Rex to work for XERRD despite not being a scientist. He was observant and extremely powerful. Blaire was exceptionally skilled at infiltrating facilities, leading to his work in establishing parts of the security system on the Dino Island Laboratory. He was a skilled sharpshooter, rather fast for his size, and talented in combat, primarily swordplay. He was also very manipulative. Blaire was calm, cool, and commanding and prefers to stay polite with everyone he meets, regardless if they were an enemy. He only became angry in extremely tense situations or being accused of not giving up his persona as Matthew Vherestorm. After the accident that led him to dawn dark, reflective sunglasses, he became very skilled at guarding his emotions, as the only to evaluate his feelings was through his face is his mouth. He had a corrupt moral code dating back to his Matthew Vherestorm days to always finish the job he was hired for, though he was known to working around said code to suit his interests. He was was extremely arrogant and thinks highly of himself. As Matthew Vherestorm, Blaire Darkling was an affably evil individual while being cruel, merciless, and unforgiving, committing the actions he did purely for the thrill of it. He abandoned all emotional connections to cut out any weaknesses. However, he eventually realized the wrongness of his actions and attempted to redeem his crimes through his work with Paradox and XERRD. Even while atoning for his crimes, Blaire feared of relapsing into Vherestorm and venomously denied it when accused of haven't given the identity up. At the end of his life, Blaire had finally accepted that Matthew Vherestorm would always control him. Triva *Blaire Darkling is based upon Blaire Vherestorm from the webseries Stupid Mario Brothers. John Blaire Howlett and his alter ego of Matthew Vherestorm are named after Blaire Vherestorm who originally went by the name of John and the actor who played Vherestorm, Matthew Howlett. *Blaire Darkling's last name comes from the name of enemies during the Alpha phase of LEGO Universe ''before being renamed as Stromlings. *Blaire's backstory was heavily inspired by a fake Reddit AMA that '''Brikman McStudz' read. An edited version can be read here. Category:Brikman McStudz Category:XERRD Category:Villains Category:Deceased Characters